C - Section advice

[heather118]

well, im almost certain that i will be having a c-section. I just wanted any info from you ladies who have had them.
When can you start doing things again like long walks?
How long was you in hospital for?
Was your LO by your bed in hospital all the time or was he/she looked after by the nurses?
Was you in alot of pain after the op?
Could you breast feed after?
How long was it before you could look after your LO on your own?
Any other info would be great aswell.

 

[LaDY]

Hi hun...i had a c section...here are the answers...

When can you start doing things again like long walks?
I cant remember exactly how long after, i think about 2weeks after for me...depends on you personally.
How long was you in hospital for?
From the day my LO was born i was in for 3 days after that.
Was your LO by your bed in hospital all the time or was he/she looked after by the nurses?
LO was next to me all the time...everytime he cried or needed feeding i would press my bell for a nurse to get him out of the crib and to pass him to me...and if i needed them to help look after him they were more than happy to. Have to say all hospitaqls are different though. I think on the 3rd day i was able to get out of bed and pick him up myself...was a bit difficult though.
Was you in alot of pain after the op?
Truthfully speaking yes but i think to make it worse i was exhausted, i hadnt slept in 48hrs and also i was shocked as i didnt expect a c section at all.
Could you breast feed after?
Yes
How long was it before you could look after your LO on your own?
I think for the first week my LO took time off work and helped me...after that i tried my best to do it myself with help there when needed.

Iv tried my best hun have to say i cant remember it all as clearly anymore...when you are in hospital when the cafitar is taken out and you have your first shower you will feel tonnes better...Goodluck hun xx

 

[sabby52]

When can you start doing things again like long walks? I went into town when Dec was 9 days old, I wasnt in any pain at that stage but I was knackered when I got home and slept for 3 hours !!!

How long was you in hospital for? I had Dec by emergency section on Monday at 2.40am and I was home midday Wed.

Was your LO by your bed in hospital all the time or was he/she looked after by the nurses? Dec was taken away straight after surgery but that was only because I was having problems on the table so him and OH had to leave. But once I got back to the ward he was with me all the time, unless I asked for help which I did a lot. !!! Lol

Was you in alot of pain after the op? YES I am not going to lie to you the first night was awful but after that I was fine I was off all pain meds by the Friday, I still got twinges now and again and still do !!

Could you breast feed after? I didnt.

How long was it before you could look after your LO on your own? My OH went back to work when Dec was 14 days so I was on my own from then.

Some advice, after your section when you are getting out of bed roll on to your side first, no-one told me this and I was trying to get straight up not a good idea.
Let everyone help as much as they want, sleep when baby sleeps and my main advice DO NOT HOOVER it rips your insides out and I know from experience !!!
Good luck hun xx

 

[Baci]

Hi, I had an emergency c-section and I think I'll be having an elective this time...

When can you start doing things again like long walks? - I took it easy for a couple of weeks and then started off with doing some short trips first.

How long was you in hospital for? - I had the c-section on Wednesday morning and was home on the Saturday evening. Violet was slightly jaundiced so we had to stay in an extra day.

Was your LO by your bed in hospital all the time or was he/she looked after by the nurses? - Violet was by my bed all the time. The first night the midwives helped me look after her when my DH went home and while the epidural wore off. Then the next morning I was encouraged to get up and be mobile.

Was you in alot of pain after the op? - I had plenty of pain killers at the start and I was fine unless I moved! I soon started to feel better though.

Could you breast feed after? - Yup, I BF'd for 18 months! I found plenty of pillows around me useful so I wasnt putting too much pressure on my stomach.

How long was it before you could look after your LO on your own? - I was on my own after my DH went back to work after 2 weeks paternity leave.

Any other info would be great aswell. - Definitely recommend a changing unit or a cot top changer. Stuff the housework and sleep when your LO sleeps!

Good luck!
Baci xx

 

[x-amy-x]

When can you start doing things again like long walks?

Long walks, it took me between 5-6 weeks to be able to endure a long walks. Short walks at 2 weeks.

How long was you in hospital for?

4 days

Was your LO by your bed in hospital all the time or was he/she looked after by the nurses?

Looked after Caitlyn by myself except for the first day, I was a little spaced out and the nurses primarily looked after her for me but they never took her away.

Was you in alot of pain after the op?

Yes. Take all the pain meds offered to you, no one got a medal for trying to do it without! It does get a lot more bearable after the first 2 weeks though. Sitting up from being laid down is the hardest.

Could you breast feed after?

I didn't as the trauma of my emergency section put me off and i was no encouraged.

How long was it before you could look after your LO on your own?

3 weeks.

 

[x-amy-x]

and what Baci said. Unfortunately I could not afford a changing unit which made it near impossible for me to change her bum for a while. I just couldn't get down!

 

[ChloesMummy]

I has a section and will be having another one this time

How long was you in hospital for?
I had Chloe on the Wed Night and was out Fri Lunch (bed shortages)

Was your LO by your bed in hospital all the time or was he/she looked after by the nurses?
She was always by my bed and i was given a lot of help until the epidural had worn off and the cathiter was out, afterwards they were still happy to help with heating bottles ect.

Was you in alot of pain after the op?
I wont lie i was, but i also had a really bad infection for 4 weeks afterwards aswell which made it worse. (Hosp cleanliness not up too much)

Could you breast feed after?
I bottle fed.

How long was it before you could look after your LO on your own?
I was at my Mums for Mat leave so always had some help and because of the infection i was longer at getting on my feet.

Any other info would be great aswell
I had a baby changing unit downstairs which was a godsend as bending over on the floor to change her was really difficult. I also put the bath on the moses basket stand or the changing unit again so i didnt have to bend over.

This time i will also be buying a c-section support belt reccomended to me by a freind.

Hope this helps x

 

[Samantha675]

well, im almost certain that i will be having a c-section. I just wanted any info from you ladies who have had them.
When can you start doing things again like long walks?
How long was you in hospital for?
Was your LO by your bed in hospital all the time or was he/she looked after by the nurses?
Was you in alot of pain after the op?
Could you breast feed after?
How long was it before you could look after your LO on your own?
Any other info would be great aswell.

I took me quite a while after my c-section to feel like doing anything. It made me feel really really tired, just worn out. So I would say 4-6 weeks before I was feeling more like myself.

I got out in 2 days, I hated being there, and got out as quickly as possible.

Nope, My son was with me the whole time.

YES, as I had never had an operation before, I found it to be very painful and sore. Just getting up to go to the bathroom make me tired and hurt. It took a good few weeks before I could move without pain.

Oh yes, my son was on by breast in less than an hour after his birth. If you want to breastfeed, make it known in advance, and get that baby on the boob as soon as you can!!

After the operation, I was only allowed to life as much as my son weighed, so I could not go anywhere, but I also didn't feel like it. Aside from that issue, I just stayed in bed with my baby the first week. We slept and nursed and jsut bonded. I didn't want to go anywhere, I didn't really want to be social, it was the most sweetest time and I loved just laying there watching him sleep. In the 2nd week I started getting up more and moving around the house, and in the weeks to come did more and more.

 

[bluebell]

I had my LO on 3rd Oct by c-section...

When can you start doing things again like long walks?

I haven't yet I've walked for about 10 mins and I was fine but I expect it will be at least another weeik before I attempt a long walk!!

How long was you in hospital for?

I had Jay at 2:46am on Friday 3rd and left hospital at 4:00pm on Sunday 5th.

Was your LO by your bed in hospital all the time or was he/she looked after by the nurses?

Jay was always by my side At one point the MWs offered to look after him for a bit so I could get some shut eye, but I wanted him to stay with me.

Was you in alot of pain after the op?

Honestly, yes I was. Once the spinal wore off (approx 10 am on 3rd) I was in a lot of pain for the first few days but I started to feel much better by about day 5 and now I'm not in pain at all and am off all painkillers except paraceptamol.

I took whatever meds I was offered to keep the pain under control and I am pleasantly surprised at how quickly I am starting to feel back to normal

Could you breast feed after?

Yes, but it took a lot of determination and support from the hospital staff, who were fantastic. Because I was so shattered on the Friday I didn't feed Jay as much as I should have or have much skin to skin contact. By the Friday night Jay was really hungry and it took a while to get him to latch on.

The first couple of days were difficult because it is hard to move into the correct position for baby to latch on, but once I had got through them I was fine and now Jay is feeding really well.

How long was it before you could look after your LO on your own?

By the Monday 6th I was able to look after Jay (but a changing table is needed so I don't have to bend down) but my DH helps out where he can (e.g. all housework, dog walking, shopping and also burping and cuddling Jay)

Any other info would be great aswell.

Don't push yourself, it's easy to do to much and then be a bit sore afterwards.
Don't be afraid to ask the hospital staff for help, that's what they're there for!!
Take all the pain meds you can get
Sleep when baby sleeps (I'm still struggling with that one )

Good luck hun I was so worried about having the c-section done and the first couple of days were hard, but once I was through those I'm really pleased with how quickly I've got back on my feet (although I'm obviously still resting a lot!!)

xx

 

[hsollis]

When can you start doing things again like long walks?

I've been told no heavy exercise, housework, lifting, etc. until at least 6 weeks and after I've been back to the hospital for my check-up.

I took a longer walk yesterday and it's been about 3 weeks and I'm paying for it today.

How long was you in hospital for?

I was in the hospital for 3 days and 2 nights.

Was your LO by your bed in hospital all the time or was he/she looked after by the nurses?

LO was by my bed most of the entire time though I did let the nurses put her in the nursery the first night just to get some sleep.

Was you in alot of pain after the op?

Not that I really remember but they gave me pain killers pretty regularly for the first 2 days. By the time it wore off and I was home it's been a bit painful but mainly when I do too much or move the wrong way. It feels like a very bad bruising on the inside of my stomach now.

Could you breast feed after?

I did. It was within a couple of hours. All the medicine they were giving me was confirmed safe for breastfeeding - including the pain killers. I asked.

How long was it before you could look after your LO on your own?

Well, I've been lucky in that the first week I had a nurse in as part of my care here in the Netherlands and then my husband had the next week off and my mum is here this week. However, next week I'll be on my own. My plan is that the only real lifting, I'll do is the baby until after my 6 week check up. I also tend not to walk up and down the stairs unless I have to and the baby and I stay within a couple of rooms, etc.

To be honest, it really depends on you and your own healing process. I suggest just listening to your body and taking it one day at time.